Bethpage State Park Ecology

     Did you know that since 2016, Audubon has organized a national program for those eager to help scientists interested in tracking the affect of climate change on birds?       Interestingly enough, this program was created as a response to a public interest; avid birders and concerned citizens had been reaching out to Audubon, specifically asking how they could get more involved in data collection and bird research. Audubon replied with a biannual opportunity called Climate Watch.       Climate Watch kicks off at the beginning of each winter and summer season. The concept of this event is simple; have volunteers focus on identifying the target species at a collection of 12 different sites (at least 200 meters apart) within a given bird habitat. Since the start of this program, Audubon has asked that participants document bluebird and nuthatch numbers. Why? Simply because these birds are easy for volunteers to identify and has a wide-spread range (which will most likely chan